Tuesday, 4 July 2017

Remember anything with this crazy memory technique!

When revising for
CIMA exams, memory power is very important. In many ways, exams are
like sophisticated memory tests – if you can remember all the
material from the CIMA syllabus and apply it correctly in your CIMA
exams, you are on the path to success!

The following technique will help you to unleash
your full memory potential, including the power to remember
everything you need for your CIMA exams!

To master memory,
we must first understand how it works. There are three different
kinds of memory: sensory, long-term and short-term. Sensory memory is
when things are stored for less than a second in our brains and then
discarded because we don’t need them – this is what happens to
the majority of information we intake every day.

Short-term memory
stores information for a little longer than sensory memory – it is
also known as ‘working memory’ because it holds thoughts while
you’re using them, like a notepad. From here memories are either
dismissed, or transferred to long-term memory.

The goal of revising
for CIMA exams is to transfer information from your short-term memory
to your long-term memory!

There are many
different techniques for remembering information, which help this
long-term storage become more solidified. Common revision methods,
which I’m sure you’ve come across in your CIMA studies, include
re-writing notes, highlighting text or even watching tuition videos.
These are all successful methods, particularly when combined with
products such as our mock exams!

However, one of the
oldest and most respected methods of comprehensive remembering is
referred to as the method of loci, or the ‘memory palace’
technique. This trick, practiced by the Greeks and Romans, involves
envisioning a building and ‘hiding’ the things you wish to
remember in different parts of that building.

How does it work?
Well, let’s say you need to remember the names of the different
subsidiary bodies of the IFRS Foundation – the Interpretations
Committee, The Advisory Council and the IASB – for one of your CIMA
exams.

To use the technique, imagine your house or another building
you know well. Then ‘walk’ through this place in your head and
assign the names of the different IFRS bodies to different areas in
the building. When you imagine yourself walking through this location
next time, you will remember the bodies of the IFRS Foundation as you
pass the different areas of the building.

The method works
best if you can envision some sort of interaction between the
location and what you are remembering. If you were trying to remember
the name ‘Interpretations Committee’ by thinking of a bookcase,
for example, you might imagine yourself picking up a dictionary to
‘interpret’ a word as you pass the bookcase.

Believe it or not,
this memory technique produces incredible results. It is regularly
cited as the method used by memory champions, including the current
memory world champion, Alex Mullen, who earned his title after
becoming the first person to memorize the order of a pack of cards in under 20
seconds!

Extraordinary feats like that might seem impossible to you
or I, but actually the human memory is a fascinating phenomenon and
we all have the ability to recall vast amounts of information. Combining the memory palace technique with Astranti revision materials, you have the memory power to pass your
CIMA exams several times over! All the information that you need to
remember to pass your exams can be found in our free study texts.

For more revision
tips and advice, like my page on Facebook and follow Astranti on
Twitter. Until next time, good luck with your revision!